Written Answers

Monday 17 July 2000

Scottish Executive

Cancer

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the financial burden of breast cancer prescription charges can be relieved for those patients taking Tamoxifen on a long-term basis who do not qualify for income support, as is the case for those with diabetes.

Susan Deacon: The prescription charge medical exemption arrangements were reviewed by the UK Government in 1997. The decision taken was that the conditions which currently qualify for exemption would remain unchanged for the remainder of the current UK Parliament. The Scottish Executive has no plans to change this position.

Climate Change Levy

Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment has been made of any increase in costs to the three Scottish water boards which will result from the implementation of the climate change levy, and whether it will make additional finance available to cover any increased costs.

Sarah Boyack: All three water authorities have made assessments of the impact of costs of the climate change levy. At this stage, their estimates are as follows:

  East of Scotland Water Authority: £400,000 per annum

  West of Scotland Water Authority: £900,000 per annum

  North of Scotland Water Authority: £475,000 per annum

  The climate change levy will apply to all business in both the private and public sectors, and is an instrument designed to encourage energy efficiency, reducing energy consumption and the emission of greenhouse gases. It would therefore not be appropriate to attempt to mitigate its impact. The monies raised will be returned to the business sector in full through a reduction in National Insurance Contributions and through support for energy efficiency measures.

Community Care

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the most up-to-date figure is for the number of blocked beds in Scotland following the census on 30 June 2000.

Iain Gray: Comprehensive information on delayed discharges following the first census is expected to be published by the Information and Statistics Division of the NHS in Scotland around mid-August.

Dental Care

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has for the future of the Glasgow Dental Hospital.

Susan Deacon: This is a matter for North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust, which has management responsibility for the Glasgow Dental Hospital.

Disabled People

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what account has been taken of access for disabled people in the guidance given to local authorities in respect of bus lanes and other traffic arrangements.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive has issued no such guidance. However, we have issued guidance to local authorities on local transport strategies which makes very clear that such strategies should address the particular travel requirements of those with special needs.

Doctors

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it shares the concerns expressed by the General Medical Council in relation to the period before which a doctor can be considered for restoration to the register following erasure being increased from three to five years.

Susan Deacon: The role of the GMC in Medical Regulation is a reserved matter and is the responsibility of the UK Government.

Doctors

Mary Scanlon (Highland and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether adequate measures are in place to ensure that incompetent doctors are not allowed to practise.

Susan Deacon: NHS Trusts and health boards already have a range of formal and informal measures to ensure that incompetent or dangerous doctors are not allowed to practise within their area. These include: voluntary withdrawal from one or more segments of the practitioner’s work; limitation of some elements of his or her work; close supervision of the work; retraining in the areas of concern, and formal suspension of the practitioner by the health board or Trust. The Medical Act 1983 is currently being amended to give the General Medical Council additional powers to impose immediate interim suspension on any doctor, in the public interest, for the protection of patients and the maintenance of confidence in the medical profession. This GMC suspension would prevent the doctor from practising anywhere in the United Kingdom.

Finance

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact the decision to fix a rate poundage for Scotland of 45.8 pence as opposed to 41.6 pence in England will have on (a) the manufacturing sector, (b) the tourism sector, (c) the retail sector and (d) the commercial property sector and whether this decision will be reviewed so that the disparity can be eliminated for the year 2001-02 and subsequent years.

Mr Jack McConnell: As was set out in detail in the paper that I made available on 17 January 2000 and is available in SPICe, the overall effect of the higher rate poundage in Scotland was balanced by the effect of the greater revaluation factor in England. The competitive position of typical Scottish firms relative to equivalent English firms was maintained. The total revenue raised by non-domestic rates in Scotland is the same in real terms as before the revaluation.

Genetically Modified Crops

Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will monitor those sites where GM contaminated seeds were sown and the crops destroyed to ensure that no contamination of the environment has occurred.

Ross Finnie: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-7315.

Health

Mrs Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money is being spent on caesarean sections, over and above the World Health Organisation recognised rate of 10-15% as being medically necessary, and whether this money could be spent on providing improved continuity of care in labour.

Susan Deacon: The information requested is not available.

Health

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-6967, what plans it has to ensure that persons with suitable medical training are available in schools where no teacher or other member of staff has volunteered to administer medicine to pupils.

Mr Sam Galbraith: Health boards have the statutory responsibility for the medical inspection, medical supervision and treatment of pupils in schools, including the administration of medicines. The day-to-day management of pupils requiring medication would normally be undertaken by school staff on a voluntary basis. In circumstances where it is not possible to put these arrangements in place, the School Health Service would have to reach agreement with parents and education authorities on appropriate arrangements for the pupils concerned.

Historic Scotland

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the proposed expenditure by Historic Scotland on landscaping near the Holyrood Parliament is provided for within its spending guidelines and, if not, what action the Scottish Executive will take.

Rhona Brankin: For 2000-01 expenditure on landscaping and the realignment of roads in Holyrood Park associated with the new Scottish Parliament will be covered by the £2.5 million transfer to Historic Scotland announced on 28 June. For future years this will be considered in the Expenditure Review.

Justice

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-5348 by Donald Dewar on 27 March 2000, whether the Lord Advocate played any part in making or recommending recent joint judicial appointments.

Mr Jim Wallace: Like all his predecessors, the First Minister took advice from the Lord Advocate and consulted the Lord President of the Court of Session, before putting recommendations to Her Majesty The Queen.

Legislation

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the division of responsibility is between it and the relevant UK Government department in respect of the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 and the Packaging (Essential Requirement) Regulations 1998.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive is responsible for implementing the recycling and recovery targets in Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste in Scotland. These are enforced in Scotland by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency under The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997.

  The Directive also contains requirements on the design, manufacturing and composition of packaging and packaging products. These were transposed into UK law by The Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 1998, made by the UK Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs. These matters are reserved as they relate to product standards.

Ministerial Committees

David McLetchie (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list all Cabinet sub-committees and their membership.

Donald Dewar: The current Ministerial Committees are:

  21st Century Government Ministerial Steering Group

  Ministerial Committee on Digital Scotland

  Ministerial Committee on Tackling Drug Misuse

  Ministerial Committee on Rural Development

  Ministerial Group on Sustainable Scotland

  Ministerial Steering Committee on Diligence

  Ministerial Working Group on GM Science

  Ministerial Working Group on Renewing Local Democracy

  Poverty and Inclusion Task Force

  Spending Strategy Group

  Details of the ministerial membership of these committees are set out below. The membership of some committees also includes senior officials from relevant policy areas and Special Advisers who advise and support the ministerial members.

  


MINISTERIAL COMMITTEES: 
MINISTERIAL MEMBERSHIP 




21st 
Century Government Ministerial Steering Group
Minister for 
Finance (Chair)
Minister for 
Health and Community Care
Minister for 
Communities
Deputy Minister 
for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
Deputy Minister 
for Children and Education 




Ministerial 
Committee on Digital Scotland
Minister for 
Children and Education (Chair)
Minister for 
Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
Minister for 
Finance
Minister for 
Health and Community Care
Minister for 
Rural Affairs
Minister for 
Communities
Deputy Minister 
for Children and Education 




Ministerial 
Committee on Tackling Drug Misuse
Deputy Minister 
for Justice (Chair)
Minister for 
Children and Education
Deputy Minister 
for Community Care
Deputy Minister 
for Communities 




Ministerial 
Committee on Rural Development
Minister for 
Rural Affairs (Chair)
Minister for 
Transport and the Environment
Deputy Minister 
for Children and Education
Deputy Minister 
for Communities
Deputy Minister 
for Community Care
Deputy Minister 
for Enterprise in the Highlands & Islands and Gaelic
Deputy Minister 
for Justice
Deputy Minister 
for Rural Affairs 




Ministerial 
Group on Sustainable Scotland
Minister for 
Transport and the Environment (Chair)
Minister for 
Finance
Minister for 
Communities
Deputy Minister 
for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
The membership 
of the Ministerial Group on Sustainable Scotland also includes:
Mr Kevin Dunion 
– Director, Friends of the Earth Scotland
Mr Mark Hope 
– Director of External Affairs, Shell Expro 




Ministerial 
Steering Committee on Diligence
Deputy First 
Minister (Chair)
Minister for 
Finance
Minister for 
Parliament
Deputy Minister 
for Communities
Solicitor-General 
for Scotland 




Ministerial 
Working Group on GM Science
Minister for 
Health and Community Care (Chair)
Minister for 
Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
Minister for 
Rural Affairs
Minister for 
Transport and the Environment 




Ministerial 
Working Group on Renewing Local Democracy
First Minister 
(Chair)
Deputy First 
Minister
Minister for 
Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
Minister for 
Finance
Minister for 
Parliament
Minister for 
Rural Affairs
Minister for 
Communities 




Poverty and 
Inclusion Task Force
Minister for 
Communities (Chair)
Minister for 
Children and Education
Minister for 
Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
Minister for 
Finance
Minister for 
Health and Community Care
Minister for 
Rural Affairs
Deputy Minister 
for Justice
Deputy Minister 
for Communities 




Spending Strategy 
Group
Minister for 
Finance (Chair)
Minister for 
Parliament
Minister for 
Rural Affairs

Multiple Sclerosis

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to restrict the indications for prescribing Interferon.

Susan Deacon: The prescribing of Beta Interferon depends on the clinical judgment of the specialist concerned, informed by advice and evidence regarding this treatment.

  At present, local Drug and Therapeutic Committees provide advice to clinicians in their health board on the use of Beta Interferon in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. To provide a single national focus for this advice, I recently wrote to the Health Technology Board for Scotland asking them to provide advice on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of Beta Interferon as a treatment for multiple sclerosis as an early priority.

National Health Service

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail all medical services previously carried out by National Health Service staff which have been put out to tender over the last five years.

Susan Deacon: This information is not held centrally.

Osteoporosis

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that all health boards include osteoporosis as a priority action in their local health improvement programmes and that the framework on older people includes osteoporosis.

Susan Deacon: The NHS in Scotland’s approach to osteoporosis is through tackling life circumstances as set out in the White Paper, Towards a Healthier Scotland , which was endorsed last year by the Scottish Executive. The Health Service is therefore aiming to prevent osteoporosis through a joined-up national policy based on promoting exercise, including the elderly, and stopping smoking and improving diet.

  Work is being taken forward as part of the Scottish Executive’s comprehensive Public Health Strategy which will assist with osteoporosis prevention. All health boards are participating in this national public health approach.

Osteoporosis

Mr Alex Salmond (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it has given to health boards and health Trusts regarding the treatment of osteoporosis.

Susan Deacon: Health boards and NHS Trusts devise strategies for the care of patients with a wide variety of conditions, including osteoporosis. They are best suited to determine the services which are required to meet the needs of their local population, within available resources. Health boards have received allocations for the current year for their hospital and community health services and prescribed drugs totalling £4.1 billion.

  Guidance to help health boards and NHS Trusts to devise strategies for osteoporosis was issued by the Health Department in 1997 in the form of a Scottish Needs Assessment Programme report. This gave the conclusions of a group of experts drawn from within the NHS on the current situation in Scotland, a review of recent research and options for the prevention, detection and management of osteoporosis.

Police

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what government funding Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary has received this year and in each of the previous five years.

Mr Jim Wallace: Direct funding of Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary by the Scottish Executive in the current financial year and by The Scottish Office in the previous five years is shown in the table below. Forces also meet a proportion of their costs from local authority funding.

  


Year 


2000-01 (estimate) 


1999-2000 


1998-99 


1997-98 


1996-97 


1995-96 



 

£000 


£000 


£000 


£000 


£000 


£000 




Police Grant 


10,231 


10,206 


9,515 


8,109 


7,574 


7,963 




Capital from Current Revenue 


125 


125 


122 


75 


75 


107 




Loan Charges 


449 


448 


447 


343 


445 


412 




Ports Unit 


1,640 


1,496 


1,496 


1,496 


353 


569 




Lockerbie Trial 


14,808 


14,288 

 
 
 
 



Automatic Number Plate Recognition 


33 

 

750 

 
 
 



Special Grants 

 

41 


249 


64 


179 


83 




Civil Defence Grant 


55 


55 


55 


55 


54 


52 




Millennium Funding 

 

293 

 
 
 
 



Additional 100% Funding 


233 

 
 
 
 
 



SDEA Funding 


60 

 
 
 
 
 



Total 


27,634 


26,952 


12,634 


10,142 


8,680 


9,186 




  Police grant was cash limited from 1996-97 onwards. The drop in the level of funding for police grant shown for 1996-97 is due to the recovery of an overpayment from the previous year. Loan charges depend on the capital projects within the force area at a given time. Dumfries & Galloway received £310,000 for policing the millennium but actual spend was £293,000. The difference will be recovered.

Public Appointments

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many unfilled Lord Lieutenant posts there are in Scotland and when these are expected to be filled.

Mr Jim Wallace: There are two unfilled posts at present - Lanarkshire and the Western Isles. The process of identifying suitable successors is well advanced.

Renewable Energy

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it monitors the use of passive solar designs in Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive is committed to the promotion of renewable sources of energy. Although the use of passive solar power in the design and construction of buildings in Scotland is not monitored, we would expect that it would play a part in meeting Scotland’s future energy needs.

Right to Buy

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total value of right to buy discounts were for years 1997-98 and 1998-99, and to provide a detailed breakdown of this total by each local authority area.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The information requested is set out in the following table. Information for the fourth quarter of 1998-99 is not yet available. The figures given include right to buy, rent to mortgage and voluntary sales, all of which were made under the right to buy legislation. This information is collected on quarterly returns from local authorities.

  


Total value of Right to Buy discounts 
(£)1,2



 

1997-98 


April – Dec. 1998 




Scotland 


£285,092,930 


£189,199,866 




Local authority 




Aberdeen City 


19,218,937  


14,278,318  




Aberdeenshire 


8,296,547  


4,112,423  




Angus 


4,922,245  


2,822,683  




Argyll & Bute 


3,344,439  


1,803,299  




Clackmannanshire 


2,451,405  


1,985,384  




Dumfries & Galloway 


6,697,264  


3,866,042  




Dundee City 


6,680,134  


4,482,157  




East Ayrshire 


8,196,315  


4,775,063  




East Dunbartonshire 


3,378,769  


2,798,015  




East Lothian 


6,147,279  


3,062,618  




East Renfrewshire 


1,740,815  


1,515,865  




City of Edinburgh 


18,211,026  


10,097,332  




Eilean Siar 


605,502  


595,925  




Falkirk 


10,377,225  


6,176,974  




Fife 


14,360,822  


10,752,430  




City of Glasgow 


40,735,177  


26,968,730  




Highland 


11,365,780  


8,127,826  




Inverclyde 


8,853,624  


5,101,274  




Midlothian 


5,175,756  


3,698,993  




Moray 


3,821,682  


1,814,951  




North Ayrshire 


5,685,967  


4,005,408  




North Lanarkshire 


25,178,909  


17,896,224  




Orkney 


648,228  


445,594  




Perth & Kinross 


5,315,140  


3,570,775  




Renfrewshire 


11,365,009  


7,683,916  




Scottish Borders 


3,879,306  


1,910,287  




Shetland 


1,284,858  


538,160  




South Ayrshire 


6,131,629  


3,687,079  




South Lanarkshire 


21,710,007  


17,288,457  




Stirling 


4,478,266  


2,607,956  




West Dunbartonshire 


4,871,778  


4,484,321  




West Lothian 


9,963,090  


6,245,387  




  Notes:

  1. The figures include Right to Buy, voluntary and Rent to Mortgage sales.

  2. The total discount for 1999 quarter 1 is not yet available.

Roads

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what share of the £280 million additional funding on roads recently announced by the Secretary of State for Transport, Environment and the Regions will accrue to Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive intend to allocate £15.9 million of additional funding to transport. This reflects a Barnett share of the comparable expenditure. This £280 million investment will provide a massive boost to the UK transport infrastructure, improving transport and reducing congestion.

Roads

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-4347 by Sarah Boyack on 21 March 2000, whether it will require the relevant local authorities to safeguard the routes identified in the answer when revised structure plans are submitted to it.

Sarah Boyack: No. Revised structure plans should include those schemes on which work is expected to commence in the plan period; other schemes should merit only description in the text, the level of detail dependant on the degree of commitment. As explained in answer to question S1W-4347, the detailed routes can then be safeguarded in local plans.

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review the effectiveness of the organisation and procedures of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and whether it will be consulting with the new Director on this issue.

Sarah Boyack: The effectiveness of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) as the regulator and enforcement body for pollution control in Scotland is kept under continual review in the light of current and new duties arising from domestic and European legislation. Procedures within SEPA are primarily operational matters, responsibility for which rests with SEPA itself rather than the Scottish Executive.

  Audit Scotland is currently carrying out a value for money study of SEPA’s main regulatory functions. A report is expected to be available to the Parliament’s Audit Committee this autumn.

  SEPA’s Chief Executive has been, and will be, fully consulted about these developments.

Scottish University for Industry

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made with the development of the Scottish University for Industry (SUfI), when an announcement will be made regarding the situation of its headquarters and when SUfI will become operational.

Henry McLeish: I announced to Parliament on 13 April that Europa Building, in Glasgow’s Argyle Street, has been chosen as the location for the Scottish University for Industry’s headquarters. The company’s staff of around 25 are expected to locate there at the end of May and the Scottish UfI will become operational in the autumn.

  Good progress has been made since the publication of our progress report on development The Shortest Route to Learning - last October Mr Frank Pignatelli was appointed as Chief Executive in November; the company, Scottish UfI Ltd, was established in December; the four Executive Directors were appointed in December; the appointments process for the board began in March, and the call-centre operator was appointed earlier this month.

Social Inclusion

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the regulations are concerning the make up of Social Inclusion Partnership boards.

Jackie Baillie: Guidance is issued on the make up of Social Inclusion Partnership boards. The Partnerships consist of local partners like the council, local enterprise company, housing agency, health bodies and, most importantly, the community, each being structured to suit its local circumstances and local needs.